Clearwire Debuts Portland WiMax

By Roy Mark |
Posted 2009-01-06

Clearwire Debuts Portland WiMax

If not quite coast-to-coast, WiMax is now at least on each coast. Three
months after Sprint Nextel carried out the nation's first WiMax rollout in
Baltimore, Clearwire-the newly combined WiMax operations of Sprint and
Clearwire-flipped the switch Jan. 6 on a WiMax deployment in Portland,
Ore.

WiMax's 4G technology allows for the delivery of last-mile wireless
broadband access, promising faster download speeds than current cellular
networks, and holds the potential to be a competitor to fixed-line broadband
such as DSL. Verizon Wireless, AT&T and
other mobile carriers have committed to a 3G technology known as LTE.

"Today is a historic day for the evolution of mobile computing and
communications services in Portland
and the U.S.,"
Clearwire CEO Benjamin G. Wolff said in a
statement. "Clearwire is reinventing wireless by delivering an unmatched
combination of Internet speed and mobility."

Clearwire plans to provide WiMax service in most of the top 100 markets by
no later than 2010, although the current economic conditions could put a crimp
in those plans. Clearwire estimates it will take up to $7 billion to complete
the network. When Sprint
and Clearwire formally closed their $14.5 billion merger deal Dec. 1 to
combine the two carriers' 4G wireless Internet businesses, the deal also
included a combined $3.2 billion investment by Comcast, Intel, Time Warner
Cable, Google and Bright House Networks.

"WiMax is a new wireless technology that raises the bar on a truly
mobile and affordable Internet experience for consumers," said Sean
Maloney, Intel executive vice president and chief sales and marketing officer.
"Intel, along with Clearwire and its partners, are proud to bring U.S.
customers a next-generation world-leading broadband solution that redefines
how, when and where consumers interact with the Internet."

Clearwire WiMax Service Details

Clearwire's open all-IP network provides customers with average download
speeds initially of 2M to 4M bps and peak rates that are considerably faster.
In the Portland rollout, mobile,
residential and business plans can be purchased by the day or by the month
without long-term service contracts. Home Internet service plans start at $20
per month, while mobile Internet plans start at $30 per month, or customers can
purchase a day pass for $10.

Portland's WiMax mobile
customers will access the service through a WiMax-enabled USB
modem for laptops. The Motorola USB modem
costs $49.99. Customers can purchase the modem from a local retail store or online,
and activate service at their convenience, anywhere in Clearwire's coverage
area.

For residential service, Clearwire offers customers a wireless high-speed
modem. Customers plug the modem into a power outlet anywhere in their home or
office and connect the modem to a PC. The residential modem, also from
Motorola, can be leased for $4.99 monthly.

Clearwire hopes its combined wireless spectrum with Sprint will allow the
new Clearwire to achieve greater coverage, cost and operational efficiency, and
bandwidth utilization than either company could by operating alone.

Intel, a longtime proponent of WiMax, will invest about $1 billion in the
new Clearwire while Comcast plans to contribute a little more than $1 billion.
Time Warner is putting up $550 million and Google $500 million. Sprint, the
nation's No. 3 wireless carrier, will own the largest stake in the new company,
with about 51 percent equity ownership. Existing Clearwire shareholders will
own about 27 percent of the venture.

The new strategic investors, as a group, will be
acquiring about 22 percent of the new Clearwire. Google will become Sprint's
preferred mobile search provider and Sprint users will have easier access to
Google Maps for mobile, YouTube and other Google services. The new WiMax network
will be open to all legal devices and services, including Google's Android
platform. Intel will supply networking gear and software for the new network.